Code Carthage: Men in Black
by Mochytea
Summary: They thought they closed the book on Lyoko one year ago. But the true roots of the virtual world remained buried in data-until now. Their real return to the past won't restore order, but may solve the mystery of Project Carthage and the Men in Black. R&R!
1. Dressed in Black

Chapter 1: Dressed in Black

* * *

><p>They watched the great technological machine, probably the finest in all of history, lose its faint golden glow and fold up back into the floor and sealed with the mark of their long gone nemesis, XANA. The eye-like symbol gazed almost forlornly at them, and a wave a melancholy rolled through them, as if they were watching a long lost friend finally being put to eternal rest.<p>

They clambered out of the manhole and replaced its iron covering. The dull metallic ring echoed in the forest, like the last note of a song. But somehow, they felt almost…relieved. All their hard work to save the world paid off greatly and now, they were free. Satisfaction replaced the sadness as they stood up and stretched. They didn't even bat an eye when Jim swaggered up to them from behind one of the trees.

"Well, isn't it the fantastic five. What kind of trouble are you up to now?" he asked sarcastically.

"Oh, nothing at all. We just closed the book on an unforgettable adventure-filled life with heroism and danger," Odd replied, in typical Odd fashion. Bewildered, Jim raised an eyebrow and began to ramble on about his own life and how he'd rather not talk about it. But they ignored him and winked at each other, ready to finally start their first ever, normal life at Kadic Academy.

Little did they know of the true danger that lay ahead, watching them from the shadows, dressed in black…

* * *

><p>Odd swirled his spoon in his bowl. Soggy cornflakes bobbed up and down in the milky whirlpool as he absent-mindedly gazed out the window, towards the forest where the tunnel to the factory remained whole and untouched.<p>

He blew purple strands of hair out of his eyes. In memory of Lyoko, he had kept his hair gelled up, but he couldn't bear to see himself exactly as he had been on his beloved virtual world. After several days grueling over his hair, only going to bed when Ulrich threw his shoes at him, he had finally decided to exempt his purple streak from the gel. Without any other way to go, the purple hair flopped over his forehead.

This morning was the only other time he hadn't finished his meal. The last time was when they had decided to shut down the supercomputer, the finale to their adventures. But they _had_ initiated a return trip too, so he guessed it didn't count.

The gang was just as quiet as he was. Breakfasts sat untouched and if eyes were lasers, the table would have been long gone and a hole would have reached the other side of the earth by now. The silence hung like a thick glass dome over the group. All (except William) were remembering their old days, jam-packed with 'heroism and danger'.

After all, it was the year-old anniversary of the shutdown of the supercomputer, the final chapter in their lives.

"Can you really believe it?" Ulrich's quiet, deepened voice broke the silence. "It's been an entire year since we last visited Lyoko.

"I know, right? It's weird, not having calls from Einstein every two seconds," Odd joked. The friends laughed softly. It was true; the lack of constant phone calls had unnerved them at first.

"All the same, it's relaxing," Yumi said. She tied her heavy black hair back into a long ponytail as she spoke. "No attacks, no reruns, no nothing. No stressing about XANA's next strike and who the next target will be. We can finally focus on our own personal lives," she added, smiling at Ulrich, who blushed and smiled back. More laughter erupted, louder this time, and his face grew redder.

"Ulrich and Yumi, sittin' in a tree, K—"

"Shut up, Odd!" Ulrich snapped, playfully lashing out at him.

"Look, Will's getting red, too," Odd sang, wrapping his arm around the older boy's shoulders.

"N-no I'm not!" William protested, shoving Odd away. He mashed his croissant in Odd's open mouth in revenge, leaving him spluttering and spitting out the roll. The group laughed again as they watched the two struggle good-naturedly until Jim waddled over and rebuked them.

The conversation returned to Lyoko as Jim left, muttering to himself. "It is quite peaceful," Aelita admitted, finishing braiding her hair. The small pink braid hung down her neck and swung gently as she flicked it over her shoulder. "But I feel empty. I lived there for a while in the first place, so I still feel a little sad."

"But the important thing is that everyone is safe," Jeremie said firmly. "We don't have to worry about the world anymore. We were finally able to become normal students, right?"

The group unanimously agreed. But their previous adventures left a permanent thirst for action, for the sense-sharpening rushes of adrenaline in their fights for humanity, against their bitter enemy. An air of desire hung about them in the silence that followed. They all felt it, and they all wanted the same thing, too.

They wanted to go back to the factory. To go back to the place that tied the knot of friendship, the place where it all began. The factory symbolized their entire group. It was the reason why they were together today, closer than any other gang in the school. Perhaps even the world.

"Hey, how about we have a party at the factory after school?" Jeremie suggested. "We could look back on everything that happened in the past and have cake and everything."

"Oh, that sounds like a wonderful idea!" Aelita exclaimed, clapping her hands. "I can make the cake."

"Another stroke of genius, eh, Einstein?" Odd said with a wide, toothy grin.

"That'll be awesome!" William agreed.

"And celebrate our victory, again," Yumi piped in. Ulrich simply nodded, with a smile just as big as Odd's.

"Then it's settled!" Jeremie said. "Meet up at the factory and bring food if you can, alright?"

The bell rang, and students began filing out of the cafeteria, shuffling their feet and grumbling. On the other hand, the Lyoko gang left, excited for their return to the factory.

* * *

><p>"So then I ended up acting like Kiwi, with the whole smelling thing and running around and barking and everything!" Odd finished, demonstrating his incident where he merged with his dog on a trip to Lyoko. Everyone laughed as they remembered his strange antics back then. William laughed the loudest.<p>

"No way! That can happen?" he asked.

"Apparently so," Jeremie replied. "When Odd virtualized on Lyoko, the scanner probably saw Kiwi as a part of him and merged the two. Their molecules—"

"We're here to party, not study!" Odd said, smacking Jeremie flat on the back. Jeremy winced and sighed in defeat but couldn't help smiling as Odd danced around again, yipping and trying to scratch his head with his foot.

"And there was that one time where XANA actually sent Krabes through the scanners to earth, and you were helped take them out in the car the cop brought for practicing our driving," Odd added. "You were pretty awesome, too!"

William's smile faltered. "I wish I remembered," he said, "and I wish I didn't act like an idiot back then, the first time. I could have helped you guys out, but I ended up making it worse instead—Ow!"

Ulrich punched him in the arm. "Hey, we told you it was alright, remember?" he said amiably. "It was all in the past, anyway. There's no use wasting sleep over it now."

"Yeah, I guess," William replied. He pushed his dark blue hair away from his face and took a few sips of soda. "But still…"

"We've forgiven you, William. It's okay now," Yumi said kindly. She patted his head and William blushed again.

"Hey, Will's red again!" Odd sang. William narrowed his eyes in mock anger as he kicked at him. Odd dodged easily and quickly slipped into fighting stance.

"Just say that again!" William growled, mirroring the younger boy.

"You want to go?" Odd said, beckoning him with one hand.

The gang cheered as Odd and William sparred, upsetting the bottle of soda, which luckily was closed. The sun sank low behind the horizon as they settled down and returned to reminiscing about their adventures in Lyoko. The gang began to clean up as the first stars shone in the dark sky. With satisfied farewells, they parted at the end of the tunnel, returning to their homes and dorms.

But it wasn't until later that night when Jeremie opened his computer to find an all-too-familiar green window appear on his screen. His heart began race and chills ran down his spine as he clicked on the ominously glowing box.

Instead of the image of a glowing red tower he expected, however, he was confronted by a strange, frightening message, accompanied by the very symbol that plagued their lives in the past.

IF YOU ARE READING THIS MESSAGE RIGHT NOW, YOU ARE IN TERRIBLE, TERRIBLE DANGER.

THE MEN IN BLACK HAVE FOUND YOU.

_A/N:_

_If no one remembers the men in black, (as far as I am aware of) they are the ones from the government who chased Franz and Aelita down. Since they and the whole backstory with the origins of XANA and the supercomputer was not explored in detail, the plot concerning them will be completely my own, except for the concept. I'll do my best to figure out Project Carthage and all that government political stuff. *sigh*_

_I will also use my own interpretation of Project Carthage since it has so many holes...so many..._

_By the way, I don't like Sissi and I never will. I know she becomes their friend in the end, but I don't want to write her in so let's just say she went to America on an exchange trip of something. Bye Sissi! Good riddance, you b—_

_And writing the actual cast was very difficult, since I'm used to OC/AU stories. I will make this as canon as I possibly can (in terms of personality and plot), so worry not! Only when I fail miserably..._

_Also, I have no idea why I'm writing this. Damn plot bunnies. I have other stories to write, too!_

_Anyway, if you read this/like this/subscribe to this/favorite this, please leave a review! Thank you~~_

_~Wings~ flying off._


	2. Demeter and Digital Dust

Chapter 2: Demeter and Digital Dust

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><p><em>IF YOU ARE READING THIS MESSAGE NOW, YOU ARE IN TERRIBLE, TERRIBLE DANGER.<em>_  
><em>_THE MEN IN BLACK HAVE FOUND YOU._

Jeremie's heart beat faster. Men in black? Could he have meant...those government dogs who tore apart Aelita's family and came after him? But how? Why?

_I AM SURE THAT YOU ARE VERY CONFUSED ABOUT WHO THE MEN IN BLACK ARE. IT IS TOO RISKY TO TELL MY ENTIRE STORY ALL IN ONE PLACE, HOWEVER, SO I WILL SCATTER THE INFORMATION AND IN CODE IN PLACES YOU SHOULD BE ABLE TO FIND, IF YOU ARE ON OUR SIDE. __  
><em>_THE MEN IN BLACK ARE DANGEROUS. THEY WANT THE SUPERCOMPUTER. AND THEY HAVE THE POWER OF POLITICS IN THEIR HANDS.__  
><em>_PLEASE FIND THE REST OF THIS MESSAGE. THE FATE OF THE WORLD LIES SOLELY WITH YOU._

_FRANZ HOPPER. _

He scanned the message over and over again, but his heart was still racing, faster than it had been since the destruction of XANA. What could Franz possibly mean by this? And if they were on Franz's side, then another part of the message must be in…His fingers twitched towards his phone, but it was late and he knew the others were tired out by their little party at the factory.

It was half-past eleven when he crept out of his room. Déjà vu flashed through him as he slipped away, just barely catching himself as he hit the hard-packed earth outside. Pushing up his glasses, he trekked through the forest and reached the manhole. He cleared away some fallen leaves and climbed down the metal rungs, replacing the heavy lid above him.

The scooter was still propped against the wall from the party earlier. Jeremie was glad that their celebration forced him to bring the old thing back to the sewers. He guided it down the stairs and kicked off, rolling towards the end of the tunnel. Upon reaching the other set of bars leading to the surface, he placed the scooter on the ground before scrambling up the ladder.

He shone the light of his phone in the darkness of the factory, trying to find his way to the ropes that would bring him down. The party had been held there, right outside the elevator; hosting it in the computer room or any of the connected rooms would only have tempted them to turn the supercomputer on, the way a quitter would be tempted to smoke again if he returned to the smoking areas in restaurants. But Jeremie was no smoker, and judging by the mood of Franz's message, they all may actually be in danger. If it were those men who were after them again…he had an excuse to return.

The supercomputer room was exactly the same when he had first stumbled upon it. The amount of dust that coated the floor and the walls was Odd-worthy, but there were no signs of decay or aging otherwise. Jeremie choked up at the sight of the old eye in the center of the room; this…this is where it all began. "It's the dust," he muttered to no one in particular, clearing his throat and rubbing his damp eyes.

But the lack of cracking stones or growing vegetation concerned him. After an entire year of not being put to use, theoretically the room should have been falling into despair by now. At first, he was relieved that no harm was done to his site of precious memories, but when he thought about it, the relief turned into anxiety. "What if someone had been coming in here and maintaining it?" he said to himself, adjusting his rectangular glasses and coughing again. "But that doesn't explain all this dust. If someone had been taking care of this room, the dust would have been cleaned, or at least would have carried tracks of anyone stepping foot in this factory. But it looks like this room has been untouched since we left it last year…unless…"

He knelt down and, with a shaking hand, slowly rubbed the dusty floor with his index finger.

There was no dust. As if triggered by a sensor, the virtual layer of dust flickered and vanished, leaving the room with a brand-new appearance. Jeremie gasped and fell back on his bum, ignoring the pain from the sudden impact.

"W-who…" he whispered. He got up, wincing slightly, and walked cautiously into the room. He noticed a slip of yellowed paper tucked in a tiny crevice by the raised platform in the center. Gingerly, he picked it up, mildly surprised that it was real. Then someone really had come in here and kept the room, while creating digital dust to imply abandonment. Was it to throw off the men in black, to keep them thinking the computer was broken? But again, who could have done it? Jeremie shook his head and pushed the thoughts aside. He unfolded the paper carefully. On it were three simple words, written in fading calligraphy:

_Cum amor,  
>Demeter<em>

He knew it wasn't from Franz, but someone else. The message was in Latin, and he translated it easily in his mind: _With love, Demeter._

Who was this 'Demeter'? He knew that Demeter was a Greek goddess of the harvest…was it a code name? Was she—maybe even he—a friend or a foe? And how did this person know about the factory? Could 'Demeter be the one maintaining the factory? But…how? He tried to think of the possible candidates responsible, but it was already past midnight. He knew if he didn't return home soon, he would end up fast asleep right here. Not only would he be at the mercy of whomever this was, he would also be severely punished by the school. He reluctantly took the elevator back, heaved himself up the ropes (also in shape), and headed through the tunnel again. The slip of paper was placed on his desk by his glasses as he tumbled in bed and drifted away.

* * *

><p>"You what?" William nearly yelled at the cafeteria table. Snickers arose from the students as they stared at his outburst, and he sank back in his chair in embarrassment, hiding his face in his jacket collar. The gang laughed along with the crowd, but quickly assumed more serious expressions when the laughter died away.<p>

Odd messily ate his breakfast as Jeremie sighed. He was already drowsy from his midnight trip and his mood was growing worse. "I told you already; I went to the factory last night."

"But why?" Aelita asked.

"We swore we would never go back to the computer again, Jeremie. You said so yourself," Yumi agreed, crossing her arms across her chest.

Ulrich nodded quietly, being just as sleepy as Jeremie was. Cramming for science tests had that effect on him and he was barely paying attention to the arguments of his friends. Instead, he was reciting formulas under his breath, mixing them up now and then.

Odd looked up from his bowl. His eating habits had not changed at all since the last year. "Don't worry; Einstein always has a reason, right?"

"Thank you Odd. Now if you'll let me explain—"

The bell rang and students filed out of the cafeteria, leaving behind trash and spills everywhere. Jeremie tossed the remnants of his meal in the garbage. "Meet up at the pothole after classes today and I'll tell you everything."

"Whatever you say, Jeremie," Ulrich muttered, still half asleep. He rose from the table, rubbing his eyes, and stumbled out the door. Odd wiped his mouth and trailed after him, teasing him all the way. Yumi and Aelita excused themselves as well, confirming the meeting place and leaving the same way too. Only William stayed behind, with an unreadable expression on his face. By the time the cafeteria was empty, William and Jeremie were the last students in the room.

Jeremie sighed again. "What is it, William?"

"Why did you go back? Did you turn it on?" he demanded.

"I didn't, but I told you, I'll spill everything after—"

"Screw that!" William snapped, pounding the table with a tightly clenched fist. The impact echoed in the empty room. "I'm here now, so tell me!"

"Why are you so determined to know?" Jeremie countered.

William bit his lip. Appearance wise, he hadn't changed since he was freed, either. But even though he didn't remember his possession at first, flashes of times when he attacked the gang surfaced every so often, causing migraines and even fainting. The time gap threw him behind in school, adding mental stress to physical stress. While he wasn't failing, he was struggling to keep up both in mind and body. Diminished yet constant teasing plagued him as well, and his hatred for XANA was more intense than anyone's in the group, even now.

"William, you know XANA is destroyed," Jeremy said, a little more gentle this time.

"I know that," he said. "But what if there's something else out there, watching the factory or something? I can't stand to think that there might be another shit-bag program just waiting to pounce if you ever return to Lyoko."

"I never said that we would—"

"Then why would you go back? If you went there, the reason must have to do with Lyoko or the factory or anything about it, and if that reason leads to another huge problem like XANA, then what's stopping you from flipping that lever and starting the fight all over again? I'm no genius, Jeremie, but I'm a lot smarter than what I was last year."

William was right. He worked hard to catch up and acquired some skills he never had before in the process, including quick analysis. He wasn't as smart as Jeremie or Aelita, but he was still sharper than he had been in the past.

All Jeremie seemed to do was sigh nowadays. "Fine, I'll tell you now, but don't say anything till everyone else knows, alright?"

"Works for me," William said with satisfaction. He settled in his seat as Jeremie leaned against the table and began to explain.

* * *

><p>Jeremy cleaned his glasses as he waited for everyone's jaws (minus William, who was acting), to close again. The fact that they said the same thing at the same time goes without saying.<p>

"Whaaaaaaaaaat?" they half yelled, with the same fervor as William back in the cafeteria.

"That's all," Jeremie said. He replaced his glasses and produced from his pocket the same slip of paper he had discovered under the layer of digital dust. It was laminated, encased in protective plastic, and reflected the soft afternoon light streaming through the trees. With trembling hands, Aelita took the paper and read the foreign words aloud.

"Cum amor, Demeter," she said softly.

"In English please?" muttered Ulrich, who was far more awake now.

"It means 'with love, Demeter," Jeremie replied. "I found it after I realized the dust was fake and someone was keeping the supercomputer room in top condition. I hadn't checked the other rooms but I'm pretty sure they're in the same shape."

"From Demeter? But Demeter is a goddess, right?" Yumi remarked.

"It's probably a code name," Jeremie said. "Obviously we don't know anything about this Demeter, but I feel like she or he has something to do with all of this."

"There's only one way to find out," Aelita said.

"So are we going to check them out or what?" Odd chirped. He didn't even bother about the purple hair in his eyes as he did a little dance of excitement, shuffling around in the grass.

"Odd, try and see the seriousness of this situation. We're not going back to the factory for fun. If what Franz said is true, we have people after us so official that even the government doesn't know about them. And we have some stranger who's been watching the factory this past year, and we don't know who's side she's on. Think about the danger we—and the school, and our families—are in now because of this. We need to find a way to keep everyone safe and in the dark till it's over…if it can be ended in the first place," Jeremie said. The mood grew solemn and sober as the truth of his words sunk in and they stood there for a moment, feeling the weight of their new burden.

"Well, we better go," Jeremie said awkwardly. "I think another piece of Franz's message is on Lyoko, so we should go find it."

"Y-yeah, let's go," William said, and headed towards the pothole.

"Wait. William's going?" Ulrich said, snapping up his head.

"William _is_ technically part of the warriors," Jeremie replied. "And we'll need all the help we can get now that the situation is so dire."

"Fat lot of help _he_ was last year," Ulrich spat. "He was being reckless and stupid and got himself possessed and made our job even harder than it actually was, with XANA running free all over the world building robot armies and sending monsters after our asses!"

William clamped his mouth shut, not trusting what he would say.

"Ulrich, it's been a year. I know he's matured," Yumi said, tucking a strand of hair behind her ear.

"Yeah, and you've been cool with him the entire time after the shutdown," Odd added.

"Because we weren't in a life-threatening situation that could end up in total domination of the world by a hunk of power-hungry data if we didn't fight it every single day while having to deal with people who were suspicious and protecting them at the same time!" Ulrich's chest heaved as if he had just run a race. His eyes were narrowed down to slits and he glared at William, who stared back at him defiantly.

"You heard them," William managed to say. "I'm better now, I swear."

"Sure," Ulrich scoffed. He turned around so his back faced the group. "If he goes, I'm not going."

"Ulrich!" chorused the gang.

He turned his head towards them, looking from the corner of his eye: "You heard me."

Aelita motioned the others to stay as they opened their mouths. She walked up to him and placed a gentle hand on his shoulder. He had grown tall enough to make others have to look up at him, although Aelita wasn't as short as she had been, either.

"Ulrich."

"Aelita, I'm not going to change my mind."

"Listen to me. I understand what you're feeling. I was there myself when William wasn't cooperating, and it was really frustrating to me. But we all know—you too, Ulrich—that he's grown up more and he can handle it now. And we'll really need everyone together now, as a team, because there's a threat that's even greater than XANA out there. They're not like XANA. They can hurt us even more than some computer program, and everything relies on us again," she said.

Ulrich groaned and covered his face with a broad hand. "I guess you're right," he mumbled. "I just thought we wouldn't have to deal with this anymore, after we shut down the computer, even though it was exciting on Lyoko. I wish…"

Aelita squeezed his shoulder. "We all do, Ulrich. We all do."

_A/N: _

_A rare chapter has appeared! Rare! Rare!_

_So who is this…Demeter? I won't say anything about him/her because that would ruin whatever effect I'm trying to make…so yay for suspense!_

_Regarding the Latin: I'M SORRY. GOOGLE TRANSLATE STINKS. D:_

_Ulrich is a bit bipolar regarding William now that I realize it, but while he forgives William a little, he still doesn't like him-ish. He never liked him in the first place anyway... I don't make any sense, I'll do better next chapter!_

_Also, I would like to clarify that I am NOT making William a Sue whatsoever, with sparkly new powers of observation where he's the only one who notices the enemy when no one else does and sudden epiphanies all over the place or anything stupid like that. I just had him mature more after his immaturity made him lose a portion of his school life. Does that make sense? But if you have an issue, please tell me nicely. _

_In fact, if you think my writing is too boring/bland/dumb, please tell me nicely._

_Flames will be devirtualized. HA SEE WHAT I DID THERE_

_Thanks to __obsessivefanno.4 as my first reviewer!_

_~Wings~ flying off_


	3. Silence and Laughter

Chapter 3: Silence and Laughter

* * *

><p>The journey to the factory could only be explained as uncomfortable. When they regrouped underground, Ulrich moodily rushed ahead, kicking off from the stairs on his skateboard and vanishing behind the bend. With a pained glance at William, Odd and Yumi followed suit. Only Jeremie and Aelita stayed behind, waiting patiently on their scooters as William dusted off his own skateboard and set it on the ground.<p>

"Let's go," he said, and they rolled away, bumping over small stones and other rubble that lined the concrete.

A pregnant silence, much like the ones they experienced earlier, settled comfortably around the three as they travelled down the length of the tunnel. By the time they reached the other ladder, three skateboards were lined up against the wall. The three teens replaced their wheels in a similar fashion and exited the sewers.

Ulrich, Odd, and Yumi were standing in the entrance of the supercomputer room when the rest of the group joined them. The digital dust was back, but flickered ever so faintly; it was in a blink-and-you-miss-it kind of state.

Yumi tentatively brushed the surface of the projection. Her fingers went through the thick layer of grime and she could feel cool metal instead.

"So this is that digital dust, eh, Eistein?" said Odd loudly. He copied Yumi and jumped back with a startled yell as the virtual illusion flickered again, much more strongly now, and vanished with a soft electrical pop. The warriors looked on, gaping.

"I guess 'Demeter' realizes that we've returned for good," Jeremie replied, and walked inside. As if on cue, the rest of them entered the room, crowding one side of the insignia on the floor. Mixed feelings stirred within every single one of them at the sight of that icon.

"How are we supposed to turn on this thing?" Odd said.

"Beats me," Ulrich said, dropping down on one knee and investigating the floor. Suddenly, thick white clouds of smoke and steam emanated from the hair-thin openings that indicated something was below its surface, and Ulrich stumbled backwards, in the same manner as Odd. As he rolled out of range of the circle, mechanical noises bounced around the metal walls and with a loud, long hiss, the symbol split along the seams and vanished under the floor, uncovering the core of the supercomputer. From the first wide cylinder, a second one rose in the center, far taller and thinner than the first. Both were covered in sharp, complex designs, which were a metallic gray and dull yellow. In front of Jeremy, a small hatch whirred open, revealing the lever inside.

The lever that had once changed their lives forever—and will change them again.

Jeremie's heart was beating like a bird's. It fluttered nervously within his chest and cold sweat began to drip down his face. His glasses slipped down on his nose and he automatically adjusted them with two clammy fingers.

The others stood impassively behind him, waiting.

With a pale, shaky hand, he grabbed the bar. It was surprisingly warm, as if someone had been holding it before him. The thought of it made him shudder in apprehension.

"Well, what are you waiting for?" William blurted out. Unlike the others, his uneasiness passed when Jeremie had explained the situation to him first.

**FLASHBACK**

"_So you're saying we can find out who started this whole mess through the supercomputer?" William asked in awe. His eyes had been widening consistently, to the point where Jeremie believed if he talked anymore, William's sockets would have been emptied._

"_Well, in a sense, yes," Jeremie replied, wishing William would blink. "Actually, we know Franz conceived the idea of creating Lyoko and XANA. But he died to destroy XANA."_

_William grimaced. He had been so eager to discover who was responsible for his time lapse and all the humiliation and pain he had gone through. But that person was already gone, and through sacrifice to eliminate the program that played a hand in his imprisonment, to boot, even if that person caused it in the first place._

"_But Franz did it to destroy Project Carthage. I'm not too sure of the details, but Franz had seen the malicious potential of it and poured his life into stopping it."_

_The dark-haired boy lit up again. "There's someone bigger behind this?"_

"_Whoever created Project Carthage? Yeah. But if the Men in Black are related, things are going to get a lot more complicated. They're higher than the government, after all."_

"_But we can figure it out if we go back to Lyoko?"_

"_Yeah…"_

_William finally closed his eyes for several seconds. When he opened them again, a thrilled, hard glint, so eerily similar to the sparkle he had when he had first learned of Lyoko, appeared in his gaze. He grinned, almost manically, like the XANA-fied smirk that had been plastered on his face for months at a time._

"_William? What's the matter with you?" he asked, nervously._

"_Nothing. Just that now I know there's someone out there to take revenge on for the irreplaceable time I had lost on Earth to all this techy bullshit."_

**END FLASHBACK**

But his outburst sparked a glare from Ulrich, who, like the others, were deep in thought about the computer.

"Will you shut up? You don't understand how we feel about this whole ordeal. We've been fighting to shut this thing down for two years and now we're about to turn it all on again," he snapped, balling up his fists at his sides.

"You were fighting to defeat XANA," William retorted, "not the supercomputer. And XANA's dead and gone and deprogrammed and deleted– whatever you call him—and now there's bigger issues at hand to counter with Lyoko; we could be possibly dealing with the French government, or maybe even a secret service! And according to Jeremie, we're not the only ones in danger!"

Silence was becoming the warriors' best friend.

"You have no idea what it's been like!" Ulrich said in a dangerous tone. "Trying to act normal in front of the other people at school, trying to explain our random absences and behavior, trying to keep people from dying during XANA's attacks…This thing nearly ruined our _lives_."

"_Nearly_ ruined your lives?" William scoffed. The other warriors wordlessly parted as he stepped towards Ulrich, like the Red Sea as Moses led his people away from slavery into hard-earned freedom. "I was completely taken away."

"Because you were—"

"Reckless and careless and stupid and full of myself," finished William, cutting Ulrich off. "I know. I lost months of my life to a hunk of data. I was replaced by an idiot of a clone. Do you realize how hard it's been for _me_, trying to get my reputation back, the little pride I had left? I was ridiculed for the first few weeks when I got back. I was already slow in the first place, and I fell back even farther in my classes. I was forced to spend my entire summer just studying, trying to catch up so I wouldn't have to repeat my grade. I was forced to learn how to control myself and the qualities that had kicked me out of school in the past. And let me tell you something, _Stern_," he added, digging an index finger in Ulrich's chest and leaning towards the younger boy. "I've learned from my mistakes. I can take care of myself. I can follow directions. And I. Can. Fight. So if you still want to kick me out, you'll have lost a player in this twisted game."

His chest heaved slightly as he stepped backwards from Ulrich, whose eyes were wide and staring. Seething, William stalked out of the room and into the elevator. He slammed a fist on the red button and the doors creaked shut over his glare. The elevator cranked as it took him away.

The gang stood there in silence for a moment before Yumi broke away. "I'll go talk to him," she said. She let her eyes travel over her friends, last and longest of all, on Ulrich, whose earlier enraged expression melted into something sheepish, and scaled the ladder into the lab. She briefly and subconsciously reminisced about her first failure to use the computer as she passed it. Then she pressed the red button and the doors opened, revealing the inside of the elevator. William must have gotten out, she thought as she watched the doors block out the dark room before her.

As a matter of fact, William was sitting across the lift, his back against a tall rusting beam. He was holding his head in his hands as she sat down beside him.

"Hey," she said quietly, unable to think of anything else to say.

"…I'm an idiot, aren't I?" he replied, his voice muffled behind his arms.

"You are."

"Thanks, that makes me feel so much better," he muttered, but a faint hint of laughter indicated he understood the joke behind her reply.

"Ulrich is too, you know," she added, encouraged. "We all know you had a just as hard time adjusting as we did. Ulrich was just being stubborn. Honestly, he never liked you in the first place."

"I know that. And we both know why."

Yumi pulled out her hair tie and let her longer locks fall to her shoulders. A slight flush crept into her cheeks as she realized what he was implying.

"Still, William?"

"I've never loved anyone else more in my life, Yumi."

He looked up then, with pained and pleading eyes. Yumi shook her head.

"Don't put me through this."

He knew it was futile to argue with her. It had been Ulrich and will always be. His possession only made the romantic gap between them into an impassable abyss, and the thought added to the list of all the things he had lost because of XANA. His anger was aroused again but he pushed it away, at least for now.

Yumi sighed. "Look, William. I'm sure by now the others will have talked some sense into Ulrich. We've all matured, and I'll vouch for you to go to Lyoko with us." The name felt strange to say.

"…all right." William stood up, refusing Yumi's offered hand and brushing dust—real dust—off of his dark pants. Yumi began feeling uncomfortable as the two of them reentered the elevator when he spoke again.

"Thank you, Yumi. I really appreciate it," he said, with a small smile.

She returned the gesture, feeling more at ease.

The metal shutter rattled shut over the rebuilding friendship behind its surface.

* * *

><p>As predicted, Ulrich had calmed down. The four of them were talking amiably when the complex lock twisted and clanked and crackled open to reveal the two older teens in the lift. At once, the conversation died down and the sheepish expression returned to Ulrich's face.<p>

William stepped out to face Ulrich as Yumi slipped around behind them and joined the rest of the group. The two boys stared awkwardly at the ground, trying to think of something to say.

"Uh—" "Um—"

They cut each other off as they spoke at the same time.

"No you first—" "You can talk first—"

Ulrich and William looked up at each other in annoyance, then burst into laughter. The other four joined them, tentatively at first, but the sound swelled and amplified with the acoustics of the room.

Ulrich recovered first. "Look, you were no more of an idiot as me. I was blinded by the past; it was just that fighting XANA was already hard enough and then you came and made defeating XANA a longer and more difficult process."

"But you were right—I should have known better back then. I get where you're coming from," William replied.

"So, truce?" Ulrich held out an arm. William grinned.

"Truce." They shook arms.

"Arms? I thought it was hands," Aelita said quizzically. Yumi rolled her eyes.

"It's a guy thing, apparently," replied the dark-haired girl, and the two of them giggled.

"Well, now that you're all lovey dovey again, let's get this show on the road!" Odd said loudly. His purple bangs fluttered in the air as he jumped on the two other boys, hooking his own arms around their necks and dangling from them. "When the hell did you guys get this tall?"

"Odd, you know you're the shortest guy here," Ulrich retorted as William choked slightly and pushed the arm off.

"And scrawniest," William added. "For a kid who eats like a starving bear, you still look like you have anorexia or something."

Odd squeezed his eyes shut and clenched his fists. "I'M NOT SCRAWNY, I'M SVELTE!"

Their laughter was revived in Odd's misery.

* * *

><p>With considerably heightened spirits, the gang regrouped around the lever. Jeremie replaced his hand on the metal bar, which had grown cold.<p>

"You ready, guys?" he asked, tightening his grip.

"Are _you_ ready, Einstein?" Odd replied, still miffed about his physique.

"Well I know I am," William said, cracking his knuckles. "I'm ready to kick some government ass!"

"Easy, tiger," Yumi said. "I'm ready."

"So am I," added Ulrich.

Jeremie turned to the last member of the group, who stood stiffly in the back of the crowd.

"Aelita?" he said softly. The conversation vanished as everyone mimicked Jeremie. Aelita looked up with damp, olive eyes. Seeming startled and embarrassed to find everyone staring at her, she coughed and brushed her sleeve against her face.

"I-I'm ready. Go ahead Jeremie."

"Are you sure, Aelita? This can wait—"

"No. I can't wallow on the past again. It was for the good of everyone in the world."

"It's not everyone if you're not happy," Jeremie countered.

"Jeremie, I'll be fine. I mean it. I'm actually a little happy. Lyoko was like my second home, anyway." She smiled and the light returned to her expression. "I'm ready."

Jeremie was quiet for a moment, then yelped in surprise and pain as Odd slapped him on the back. His hand slipped from the lever.

"What are you waiting for, Einstein? Princess here is ready too, so let's go! Ladies and gentlemen, the sequel to Odd the Magnificent and his humble troop of sidekicks is about to begin!"

"More like Odd the Malnutritioned," Ulrich retorted and Odd frowned as everyone laughed.

"Well, it looks like we're all ready for this," Jeremie said. "On a count of three!"

"One…" Jeremie reached for the lever again.

"Two…" He braced himself and tightened his hold till his knuckles turned white. Suddenly, five more hands placed themselves on his own, and he saw the grinning faces of his friends as they joined him in turning the computer on again. This time, he was not alone, and he will never be. _Franz, I owe you more than anyone can ever imagine_, he thought as he smiled too.

"Three!" With that word, the six of them pushed downward on the lever. Immediately, the dull yellow began to glow, growing brighter and brighter till it became a blinding white. The gang stepped back, shielding their eyes as the machine whirred to life again. The ground vibrated with the revival of the supercomputer. And as quickly as it appeared, the light faded to the old warm glow of the designs on the cylinders. A stunned silence that followed was broken by a whoop.

"The Lyoko Warriors are BACK IN BUSINESS!" Odd hollered, and the others cheered along with him.

"Let's do this," William agreed, and they split, Jeremie heading up to the computer and the rest of the gang taking to elevator to the old scanner room.

"Aelita, are you sure you're alright?" Yumi asked. The pink girl's sparkle had vanished with the light.

"Yeah, what's wrong, Princess?"

"It's nothing…well actually, I've been getting a strange premonition again. Like the one of my father sacrificing himself to destroy XANA," she confessed.

"Did you dream it?" Ulrich asked.

"No, just a feeling, which is why I'm not sure about anything," Aelita replied. "I just hope we'll be alright, returning to Lyoko like this."

* * *

><p>Somewhere in France, in another high-tech laboratory, a massive computer screen lit up and flashed a bright, obnoxious red. A strange white symbol flickered in the intervals between the flashes. Two lone men, who were typing away at smaller separate PCs jerked their heads up and stared at the screen, as if they couldn't believe their eyes.<p>

It was difficult restraining themselves from snatching the kids from their school or just barging into the little factory and smashing up the computer. But their higher-ups had forbidden them from harming the children and what they needed to destroy was inside the supercomputer, not the actual machine itself. And that machine was the only key to destroying what was within.

The two men, all dressed in black except for a small patch of spotless white beneath their blazers, looked at each other and nodded. They replaced their black glasses over their eyes. One of them tapped his Bluetooth and spoke into the mic.

"The rats have returned to the nest."

_A/N:_

_Please don't kill me. *dodges lasers*_

_I've been thinking about the relationship between Ulrich and William for a while. In terms of Lyoko and Yumi, they hate each other, but I think other than that, they'd be pretty decent friends. _

_So they've realized the gravity of their situation and since they've matured (I'll be writing that in more too) they can at least call a truce._

_Speaking of truces, I still have no idea why guys shake arms. I've seen it before…why? If I have a male reviewer…why?_

_Aelita wants to know, too._

_And just curious... WxY or UxY? What's your preference?_

**_Thanks to __obsessivefanno.4 and SecretKeeper96 for their reviews~ _**

_See those pretty little words down there? The 'Review this Chapter?' _

_*hint hint wink wink*_

_~Wings~ flying off_


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